APC blast Fayose over unpaid worker's salaries

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has criticised Governor Ayodele Fayose over unpaid workers salary arrears.

It said the governor's preference for building airport, new market and fly-over bridge contradicted his campaign slogan to "tar stomachs" before embarking on physical infrastructure.

And added that it is sheer opportunism and lack of integrity to deceive the people during campaigns with mouth-watering promises only to turn around to deny them after getting to power to pursue selfish agenda.

Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, said on Sunday that the governor had been playing games with the intelligence of Ekiti people since the assumption of office in his programme implementation policy.

Buhari To Stop His Irrelevant Foreign Trip

Ekiti State governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has called on well-meaning Nigeri­ans to prevail on President Mohammadu Buhari to stop his irrelevant foreign trips, describing the president’s trip to the United States of America on Wednesday for the 4th Nuclear Security Summit, while Nigerians are suffering at home as, “joke of the year.”
Mr. Ayodele Fayose said, “it re­mains a mystery what Presi­dent that met power generation at 6,000MW and could not manage it such that power generation crumbled to 0MW yester­day, will contribute to the Nuclear Energy Summit in America.”
Speaking through his Special Assistant on Pub­lic Communications, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose said, “it is shameful that while Presi­dent Buhari was far away in the United States of Ameri­ca, attending a summit that does not have any bearing on Nigeria and its people, an unprecedented happened – power generation stopped completely for over three hours!”
The Governor said the sufferings of Nigerians deserved the at­tention of the president in­stead of junketing around the world, wasting the country’s scarce foreign ex­change.
Mr. Fayose alleged that over $50 million must have been spent on the president’s frequent foreign trips, adding that Nigerians should ask President Bu­hari whether his trip to the United States of America to attend Nuclear Energy Summit will bring the lin­gering fuel scarcity being experienced in the country to an end.

PDP plead Buhari to hold Kaduna monthly allocation

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, youths in Kaduna State, pleaded with President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday, to withhold the monthly Federation allocation to the 23 Local Government Areas, LGAs, of Kaduna State, claiming the state government had hijacked the council funds, contrary to earlier promise not to.
On the platform of PDP Youths, they also alleged that the Mallam Nasir El Rufai-led government had continuously acted in contempt of the constitution of the country by forming an Interim Management Committee, IMC, to run Kaduna state councils since assumption of office
President of the group, Danjuma Sarki, at a briefing claimed: “On May 10, 2015, before his swearing-in, Governor El-Rufai told the forum of All Progressives Congress, APC Local Government Chairmen in the state, who paid him a congratulatory visit, that the in-coming administration would not touch funds belonging to the local government councils of the state. He said the local government would be allowed to run the affairs of the councils without any interference.
“Again, on July 6, 2015 during the swearing-in of the last Local Government Interim Management Committees appointed by El-Rufai, he declared that he had abolished state and local government Joint Account and that he would not hold local government funds hostage for any reason. In addition to that, he promised to be remitting ten percent of the state’s internally generated revenue to the local government areas of the state. He enjoined them to swing into action and commence meaningful projects in all the wards in their councils. This was widely publicized and boosted the confidence of the people on the government.
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Tinube tackle Minister of Petroleum

The National Leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, yesterday ruled the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, out of order for saying he should not be expected to conjure magic in resolving the current fuel crisis in the country.
He said the minister strayed from the progressive calling required of the Buhari administration by making the statement attributed to him.
Kachikwu who doubles as Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) had said, in reaction to public criticism of his handling of the fuel scarcity, that Nigerians should count themselves fortunate that the NNPC under his stewardship has been able to bring in the amount of fuel it is currently doing.
Tinubu, in a statement, threw in his lot with Nigerians who, according to him, were “as right to feel insulted as the minister was wrong to have said such a thing.”
He said those charged with the responsibility of running the affairs of the country should learn to do things creatively and away from past practices.
“The art of governance is difficult and complex, especially during trying times. The steep reduction in global oil prices from over 100 dollars per barrel to roughly 40 presents a hard challenge. “We can no longer afford past practices. Nigeria now requires creative reform, materially changing the substance of national economic policy as well as the objectives of that policy and how the policy is presented to the people. Therein lies the essence of progressive democratic governance.
“The Buhari administration represents the last best hope we have to install such governance in Nigeria and avert the catastrophe that would have befallen us had the prior government remained in place. Had the nation continued with the spendthrift corruption and vagabond economic policies of that administration, we would have soon experienced such a collision with the harsh consequences of that government’s malign ways that our very institutions of government may have been distorted beyond fixture and repair.”
“In this effort, there may be no economic matter more difficult to unravel and more sensitive to the purse of the average person than the current fuel scarcity"Asiwaju Tinubu said.
Even here I am confident of progress because I know the commitment of the president to resolving this matter. I make no attempt to hide it. I am an avid and partisan supporter of this government and of the progressive policies of the party, the APC, upon which this government is based.
“With that I do reserve the right and the duty as a Nigerian to voice my opinion when I believe a member of this government has strayed from the progressive calling required of this administration. I do this because my greater devotion and love are for this nation and its people. Party and politics fall secondary.
“Much public ire has been drawn to the statement made by Minister of State (Ibe Kachikwu) that he was not trained as a magician and that basically Nigerians should count themselves fortunate that the NNPC under his stewardship has been able to bring in the amount of petrol fuel it is currently doing.

Taraba Speaker Dr. Mark Bakko Usani Resigns.

Hon. Mark Bakko Usani

The speaker of the Taraba State House of Assembly, Dr. Mark Bakko Usani has resigned and the House unanimously elected former speaker, Hon Abel Peter Diah as the new speaker.

Dr Bakko during a plenary sitting yesterday in Jalingo said his resignation was personal.

He thanked members of the state House of Assembly for the cooperation they have showed during his regime as the speaker of the House.

Hon. Abel Peter Diah

Dr Mark after vacating his seat as the speaker of the House nominated Hon. Abel Peter Diah of PDP Mbamnga constituency, and was seconded by Kizito Bonzena, PDP Zing constituency, respectively.

Diah in his acceptance speech expressed gratitude to the members for finding him worthy to occupy the position for the second time, stressing that he will run an open, transparent and accountable Assembly that would benefit all Tarabans. LEADERSHIP recalls that the court of appeal sitting in Yola earlier nullified the electoral victory of  Mr. Abel Peter Diah and ordered for a fresh supplementary  election that later brought him back as a member.